Handbook Talk:AMD64/Installation/Base

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True multilib needs modification in make.conf

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This discussion is done.

When installing selecting the multilib profile itself wasn't sufficient. I only got true multilib support after adding the follwing in make.conf. I think it's worth mentioning it upfront so that people wouldn't have to recompile @world 

ABI_X86="64 32"
No, this is not a good suggestion to make for all Gentoo users to read the Handbook. We recommend only setting enable abi_x86_32 as-needed on a per-package basis, not globally. As explained by Ben Kohler (iamben) , "if you enable ABI_X86="32" globally up front, you save a little bit of user configuration time up front but you waste a lot of compile time on every upgrade forever". Also, if this was set globally as you suggest, revising those packages later can cause headaches. Kind regards, --Maffblaster (talk) 19:30, 3 October 2016 (UTC)

Chroot on one line

Talk status
This discussion is done as of Jun 6 2015.

It would be imo convenient to have one-liner for the mounts before the chrooting, instead of five separate commands, so that one could easily copy-paste the one command to terminal and execute it in one take

I.e., instead of (or, placed after) 

root #mount -t proc proc /mnt/gentoo/proc
root #mount --rbind /sys /mnt/gentoo/sys
root #mount --make-rslave /mnt/gentoo/sys
root #mount --rbind /dev /mnt/gentoo/dev
root #mount --make-rslave /mnt/gentoo/dev

there ought to be also 

mount -t proc proc /mnt/gentoo/proc && mount --rbind /sys /mnt/gentoo/sys && mount --make-rslave /mnt/gentoo/sys && mount --rbind /dev /mnt/gentoo/dev && mount --make-rslave /mnt/gentoo/dev

--Renergy (talk) 19:39, 6 June 2015 (UTC)

Renergy, I can see that may be easier to copy and paste a one line command such as you posted above. Part of the purpose of the Handbook is to teach people how to install Gentoo Linux, not to make the install as fast as possible, which is why we have each command on a separate line. I will think about putting a one-liner like you suggest as a secondary option for people who are in a hurry. Sincerely, --Maffblaster (talk) 22:14, 21 December 2015 (UTC)

Potential security problem

Talk status
This discussion is still ongoing as of Jun 28 2015.

Going though the handbook normally leads you through getting the minimal .iso and stage 3 tarball over https, checking hashes and verifying with gpg. All good so far. Here, it tells users to run emerge-webrsync, without any warning that it defaults to using http - enabling a MITM attack. If I understand correctly, this is for downloading and setting up portage, while running as root. By default, emerge-webrsync does not verify gpg signatures, so at this point the system must be considered fundamentally insecure.

The user stanley on irc suggested using this procedure: Handbook:AMD64/Working/Features#Pulling_validated_Gentoo_ebuild_tree_snapshots - it should definitely be mentioned as an option at this stage, since doing it with an already insecure system at the later stage will make little difference.

Also, emerge-webrsync should default to using HTTPS.

--OliverUv (talk) 12:26, 28 June 2015 (UTC)

But this affects all arches, right? See Handbook_Talk:Parts/Installation/Base --Charles17 (talk) 17:43, 20 January 2016 (UTC)
Hm...I'll see what we can do about this upstream. It would be nice if the mirrors used HTTPS, but I'm not sure we have a good way of enforcing it. --Maffblaster (talk) 18:21, 18 November 2016 (UTC)
So, the good news is that current Gentoo minimal install images ship with a sufficiently modern Portage (>=2.3.42, with the rsync-verify USE flag set) such that for a vanilla rsync-based emerge --sync (under the recommended /etc/portage/repos.conf/gentoo.conf settings from the guide: sync-rsync-verify-metamanifest = yes etc.), signature verification with failure quarantine will be carried out.
The not so good news is that in this section of the handbook, it is still recommended first to carry out a vanilla emerge-webrsync, which for some mirrors anyway will use unauthenticated HTTP (e.g. http://trumpetti.atm.tut.fi/gentoo), and which does not (by default) signature verify the downloaded tree.
This is easy enough to work around though - just set sync-webrsync-verify-signature = true in the [gentoo] section of /etc/portage/repos.conf/gentoo.conf, temporarily set sync-type = webrsync in that file also (rather than sync-type = rsync) and then issue emaint sync --auto. This will do all the necessary signature updating etc and then download and verify the daily snapshot (NB - emerge-webrsync will complain if you try to directly invoke it with sync-webrsync-verify-signature = true set; you need to use emaint sync or emerge --sync). Then, once done, just flip back to using sync-type = rsync. This ensures all updates are validated, and doesn't mess the flow of the guide up too much. (I'm just in the process of switching over to recommending this workflow for my own EFI install guide, incidentally.) --Sakaki (talk) 13:33, 11 October 2018 (UTC)

Choosing profiles

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This discussion is done as of 2024-01-04.

I believe profiles should be chosen after the initial reboot at least for amd64 and x86. Choosing a desktop profile, in particular, too early causes increased and unnecessary install time added to a user's experience.

I think it should be saved until the first reboot.

--Grknight (talk) 01:46, 22 October 2015 (UTC)

I will experiment on a virtual machine with this. My initial thoughts are that you're right. Rebuilding world after the profile selection is probably not a necessary part of the process. --Maffblaster (talk) 23:28, 1 February 2016 (UTC)
Also, the profile selection should be updated to 17.0, maybe with a little warning regarding 17.1 which got stabilized recently.--Charles17 (talk) 10:28, 27 December 2017 (UTC)

Update in progress... --Maffblaster (talk) 02:44, 28 April 2018 (UTC)

Revisiting again after some time and many changes made by Gentoo's release engineer team and desktop stage files. I do not believe updating the @world set should increase install time enough to be a concern and it is an important part of the learning process. Especially when considering the introduction of the (optional) binary package host section which I have recently added and if a (relatively recently produced) desktop stage file is used there are generally only a few dozen packages updates to be performed... modern hardware can handle the compiling and other hardware (at least AMD64 and ARM64) can use the binhost. It also fits nicely into this section so I think it's safe to keep, but perhaps I'll add a little note that installations which are pressed for time can avoid it. --Maffblaster (talk) 08:58, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Finished here: Special:Diff/1272306/1272318. --Maffblaster (talk) 10:02, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Add -qt5 USE flag

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This discussion is done as of May 13, 2017.

Let me quote: "gnome gtk -kde -qt4 will compile programs with GNOME (and GTK) support, and not with KDE (and Qt) support, making the system fully tweaked for GNOME (if the architecture supports it)."

Please add -qt5 to the previous sentence as well.

Fturco (talk) 15:25, 16 April 2017 (UTC)

Good suggestion. Consider it done. --Maffblaster (talk) 06:35, 14 May 2017 (UTC)

Will we need Section of "Mounting the boot partition"?

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This discussion is done as of 2024-01-04.

Hello, Operation of this section is already executed in section of "Preparing the disks".
Haven't we mounting /dev/sda2 on /boot already?

Kind regards, --Komainu8 (talk) 11:04, 13 May 2017 (UTC)

It depends on what install path you take. With this being said, the entire disk section(s) of the Handbook need a major reworking, so I would not be surprised if mounting is inconsistently noted here. I'll leave this open for now since no one is ready to work on fixing the disk section yet... --Maffblaster (talk) 06:39, 14 May 2017 (UTC)
It would be great to have such thing mentioned. --Wowpetr (talk) 09:25, 12 July 2017 (UTC)
In this discussion, undoing the creation of the /boot directory was accepted, but mounting is still required depending "on what install path you take". If so, wouldn't be informative to display this in the instructions? I know that if you try to re-mount a partition to the same directory is harmless (no messages are displayed on the shell after execution) but it would be even more educational to the new user to know if this is expected. If not, maybe consider delete this subsection?--Neyuru (talk) 20:03, 5 April 2020 (UTC)
This should now be fixed with the section: Handbook:AMD64/Installation/Base#Preparing_for_a_bootloader. --Maffblaster (talk) 08:48, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Mounting the necessary filesystems

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This discussion is done as of July 25, 2017.

It is good to mention that if you interrupt the installation process at any stage later (e.g. by rebooting), you may need to mount these partitions again. --Wowpetr (talk) 09:25, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

Thanks for the tip. Your suggestion has been implemented! --Maffblaster (talk) 23:34, 25 July 2017 (UTC)

Entering the new environment

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This discussion is done as of July 25, 2017.

It is good to mention that if you interrupt the installation process at any stage inside chroot environment (e.g. by rebooting), you need to chroot again. --Wowpetr (talk) 09:39, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

Thanks for the tip. Your suggestion has been implemented! --Maffblaster (talk) 23:34, 25 July 2017 (UTC)

Warning about 17.x profiles

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This discussion is done as of April 27, 2018.

Please add a big warning before the profile selection instructions, to tell users not to use 17.0 or 17.1 profiles until they have read the corresponding news items and are prepared to follow the migration instructions.

Iamben (talk) 15:34, 29 December 2017 (UTC)

Done. --Maffblaster (talk) 02:39, 28 April 2018 (UTC)

Typo correction

Talk status
This discussion is done as of July 25, 2019.

Right at the bottom of the page, the line 

root #env-update && source /etc/profile && export PS1="(chroot) $PS1"

should read 

root #env-update && source /etc/profile && export PS1="(chroot) ${PS1}"

to properly maintain consistency with the previous command under Entering the New Environment

Redchillipadi (talk) 02:54, 27 April 2018 (UTC)

It looks that way to me, Redchillipadi . What's the exact link that you're seeing just $PS1? --Maffblaster (talk) 02:38, 28 April 2018 (UTC)

My browser says Handbook:AMD64/Installation/Base PS1 is mentioned under Entering the new environment as ${PS1} and at the bottom under Configure Locales as $PS1 Redchillipadi (talk) 02:55, 28 April 2018 (UTC)

Fixed (Special:Diff/816541/prev)! For some reason I wasn't seeing it the first time. Thank you! --Maffblaster (talk) 17:23, 25 July 2019 (UTC)

Remind the user to fat32 format the esp partition

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This discussion is done as of 18 July 2022.

I'm a new gentoo user but I guess it's not a bad thing to have a novice's view on how this guide is structured.

The thing I noticed, following the uefi route is that it would be better to get reminded further down again to format sda2 (the esp partition) as FAT32. It isnt mentioned at the appropriate place.

The first time doing this guide, I didn't notice that, ended up installing everything and then the bootloader setup failed because I had the esp as ext2 instead of fat32 (and wasn't able to fix it). Now I'm on my second try due to that. 

[...]
root #mkfs.ext2 /dev/sda2
root #mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda4
Now create the filesystems on the newly created partitions (or logical volumes)."

It should be placed (or at least mentioned again) here.

AnukWolf (talk) 16:00, 13 October 2018 (UTC

While I agree with the partitioning reminder, do yo really believe that it should be included in this section Installing the Gentoo base system? I think it is more appropriate to include an enhancement in Preparing the disks section. There are, to this date, 3 discussions regarding this issue there.--Neyuru (talk) 19:24, 5 April 2020 (UTC)
As a new Gentoo user too, I had no problem to use the right filesystem.
In the Preparing the disks chapter of 2018 :
- The "Using UEFI" section explained all that ; it even emphasized the necessity of a FAT variant for the ESP with a "Important" box, and the risk of not being able to boot otherwise.
- The "Default partitioning scheme" section also indicated and summarized the need for FAT32 for the ESP.
- The "Applying a filesystem to a partition" section showed the command to create a boot partition in ext2, that's true, but it explicitly stated this was an example (today, this same example is using FAT32, which may be the change you wanted).
So, the information is already mentioned 2 times (3 times if you're counting the example), at the appropriate place, and with emphasis.
Also, I agree with Neyuru  : there is no use in reminding these things after the Preparing the disks chapter, as the user is supposed to have applied the relevant filesystems to the partitions after that.
--Blacki (talk) 07:39, 18 July 2022 (UTC)

Add instructions for bind mounting udev

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This discussion is done.

os-prober needs /run/udev to function properly and will hang indefinitely if it's not bind mounted from outside. Consider adding a line for bind mounting it from outside the chroot, or at least a small blurb under the mounting to say that other things might need to be mounted. See this section of the GRUB wiki page for details. — The preceding unsigned comment was added by Sielicki (talk • contribs) 12:21, December 29, 2018‎

Thank you for the feedback, Sielicki . I would like to test on a current LiveCD suggested the change before implementing. --Maffblaster (talk) 18:24, 25 July 2019 (UTC)
Uncertain if it was added at the time of your comment here, however the virtual filesystem mount instructions do say to bind mount the /run directory, which would include the udev subdirectory. See Handbook:AMD64/Installation/Base#Mounting_the_necessary_filesystems. This discussion can be closed. --Maffblaster (talk) 13:21, 27 November 2022 (UTC)

Remove command to create /boot

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This discussion is done as of July 25, 2019.

The /boot directory is already present in the stage3 tarball, so `mkdir /boot' can be removed. Also the paragraph just above needs to be adjusted slightly.

--Rafo (talk) 19:02, 1 January 2019 (UTC)

Good point. Suggested changes implemented (Special:Diff/816547/prev). Thank you, Rafo ! --Maffblaster (talk) 17:53, 25 July 2019 (UTC)

Minor English grammar correction

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This discussion is done as of July 25, 2019.

Where it says, "updates can be delayed after the Gentoo installation has finished," I think it should say "delayed until after." I would change it myself, but I don't have such permissions. --Dhirsbrunner (talk) 03:58, 24 July 2019 (UTC)

You got it. I have made the suggested change (see Special:Diff/816511/prev). Thank you for the input! --Maffblaster (talk) 17:06, 25 July 2019 (UTC)

Unclear instructions in section 'Configuring Portage'

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This discussion is done as of 2024-01-04.

In the first subsection 'Installing an ebuild repository snapshot from the web', we tell users that they can skip this subsection if they have no firewalls and a fast network.

But in the second subsection 'Optional: Updating the Gentoo ebuild repository', we don't tell those users that they must run 'emerge --sync', because they skipped 'emerge-webrsync'. Instead, we tell them that 'emerge --sync' is optional. So they might skip this subsection as well and won't have a Gentoo ebuild repository.

--Mike155 (talk) 03:22, 5 November 2019 (UTC)

Yes. The emerge --sync should be the normal and not optional. Recommending emerge-webrsync without the required manual setup as described in Handbook:AMD64/Working/Features#Validated_Gentoo_repository_snapshots is a bad idea. Better drop it completely or move it to a Tip: In case of limited bandwidth ....--Charles17 (talk) 08:57, 5 November 2019 (UTC)
Can we make this more clear somehow? We just had this same situation play out on IRC. --Sam (talk) 17:57, 15 March 2020 (UTC)
Same topic here and there (talk page for »Parts«)--Charles17 (talk) 08:08, 16 March 2020 (UTC)
With Portage feature enhancements and the flow of the handbook at this point, I believe this concern is no longer an issue. emerge-webrsync performs signature check; emerge --sync is entirely optional. --Maffblaster (talk) 08:43, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Incomprehensible sentence: '... as carefully chosen USE flag defaults may be configured in some ebuilds ...'

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This discussion is done as of 2019-11-05.

Do we configure USE flag defaults in ebuilds?

--Mike155 (talk) 18:36, 5 November 2019 (UTC)

You are right, it is poorly worded. I have made it more clear. --Maffblaster (talk) 00:21, 6 November 2019 (UTC)

Incomprehensible sentence: '... without prompting the user for the licenses previously accepted.'

Talk status
This discussion is done as of 2024-01-04.

The sentence

'Portage uses the ACCEPT_LICENSE variable to determine which packages to allow without prompting the user for the licenses previously accepted.'

doesn't seem to be right. Maybe something like: 'Portage uses the ACCEPT_LICENSE variable to determine which packages are allowed to be installed.'

--Mike155 (talk) 18:36, 5 November 2019 (UTC)

This section has undergone a major reorg and rework. This discussion is stale. See Special:Diff/1272302/1272304. --Maffblaster (talk) 08:36, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Confusion about per-package exceptions for ACCEPT_LICENSE

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This discussion is done as of 2022-11-27.

One of the first sentences in paragraph 'Optional: Configuring the ACCEPT_LICENSE variable' is: 'Exceptions can be made per-package in /etc/portage/package.license as well.'

The last example of the section shows how to define exceptions in /etc/portage/package.license/kernel.

Why is it etc/portage/package.license in one case and /etc/portage/package.license/kernel in the other? I doubt that new users will understand this.

--Mike155 (talk) 21:24, 5 November 2019 (UTC)

This has been clarified in the following diff: Special:Diff/1167615/1169737.

Section 'Configure locales': missing reference to /usr/share/i18n/SUPPORTED

Talk status
This discussion is done as of 2020-04-06.

The section tells users that they can/should configure locales in /etc/locale.gen.

The section should also tell users that only locales shown in /usr/share/i18n/SUPPORTED are allowed and that they must pay attention to small and capital letters.

Maybe we can add a box like the one below (I added such a box in the German translation):

Tip
A list of supported values is given in file /usr/share/i18n/SUPPORTED. Please pay attention to small and capital letters and do not use values that are not shown in this file.

--Mike155 (talk) 22:39, 5 November 2019 (UTC)

Hello Mike155 , this is a welcome enhancement. Thank you for following the recommended format for submitting improvements. I have made the change here. Thank you again! Kind regards, --Maffblaster (talk) 08:06, 6 April 2020 (UTC)

What is an 'rsync tree'?

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This discussion is done as of 2020-04-06.

'News items were created to provide a communication medium to push critical messages to users via the rsync tree.'

What is an 'rsync tree'? Maybe 'Gentoo ebuild tree'?

--Mike155 (talk) 22:27, 6 November 2019 (UTC)

This terminology has been removed here Thank you. --Maffblaster (talk) 07:24, 6 April 2020 (UTC)

Add warning about arch-chroot

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This discussion is done as of 2020-04-06.

Some users in #gentoo seeking support run into issues with 'bad file descriptor' after using arch-chroot. We should warn about this and recommend they stick to the given commands.

--Sam (talk) 02:47, 30 March 2020 (UTC)

Thank you for the comment however, we cannot provide warnings for all non-recommended software. If someone is having problems using software that is Arch specific (and not available at this time in Gentoo), then they can work that out on the Arch wiki in an Arch bug tracker. We provide instructions to use our official installation media and direction on properly chrooting. Kind regards, --Maffblaster (talk) 07:35, 6 April 2020 (UTC)

Missing locale options for America/Monterrey

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This discussion is done as of 2020-04-06.

Maybe this is a bug of the package and not to be discussed here but, just to inform my findings. I selected the timezone "America/Monterrey" and when configuring the locale with "nano -w /etc/locale.gen" I only found the option: "es_MX ISO-8859-1" in the file, so I selected it (no other option was present for my language). This is dangerous, as the wiki explains: "We strongly suggest to use at least one UTF-8 locale because some applications may require it.". I found out the hard way too: I had several compile time problems when emerging GNOME, which where gone if adding the line "es_MX.UTF-8 UTF-8" to the "/etc/locale.gen" file. Although this option was not present as an option, I can testify that adding it removed the aforementioned compile errors. Can someone help me file this bug?--Neyuru (talk) 03:22, 6 April 2020 (UTC)

Hello. Yes, this is not an issue specific to our installation instructions. If you are confident that you have done everything correctly in your installation and you still believe this is an issue with a package, then you'll probably want to file a bug with GNOME's upstream (NOT Gentoo's Bugzilla). If you otherwise have something you believe is necessary to add to these installation instructions, then please follow our recommended format for submitting improvements. Kind regards, --Maffblaster (talk) 07:39, 6 April 2020 (UTC)

Hello and thank you for the rapid response. Yes, I agree there is nothing wrong in the instructions, but I wonder, is the main problem in the omission of the correct encoding options available in "America/Monterrey"? or in GNOME not supporting some encodings? I tend to gravitate to the first option. It is strange that by specifying this locale only *one* of the options belong to the official language spoken there, and it is not even in UTF-8. This is a list of the options available: {#en_US ISO-8859-1, #en_US.UTF-8 UTF-8, #ja_JP.EUC-JP EUC-JP, #ja_JP.UTF-8 UTF-8, #ja_JP EUC-JP, #en_HK ISO-8859-1, #en_PH ISO-8859-1, #de_DE ISO-8859-1, #de_DE@euro ISO-8859-15, #es_MX ISO-8859-1, #fa_IR UTF-8, #fr_FR ISO-8859-1, #fr_FR@euro ISO-8859-15, #it_IT ISO-8859-1}. I sincerely apologize as this conversation does not belong here but, I wanted to share my experience, if someone could find that useful. --Neyuru (talk) 16:50, 7 April 2020 (UTC)

Search for /usr/share/i18n/SUPPORTED (has been added lately) in the article. --Charles17 (talk) 17:57, 7 April 2020 (UTC)


Move Selecting Mirrors section after the chroot entry

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This discussion is done.

If a user is not using the Gentoo installation media (and in #gentoo, we often note that it's not necessary to use Gentoo's media), they may not have access to the mirrorselect tool until they enter the chroot.

Perhaps it should be moved after the chroot section.

--Sam (talk) 01:51, 24 April 2020 (UTC)

Finally getting around to make this change. Apologies it took so many years to implement! See Special:Diff/1272298/1272302. Thanks, Sam James (sam) ! — The preceding unsigned comment was added by Maffblaster (talk • contribs) 2024-01-04T08:10:45‎
Mirrorselect is not part of all (any?) stage3 tarballs, so moving the "mirrorselect" section below the chroot does not work in its current state as I experienced. One has to either select the mirrors before chrooting, select them manually or install app-portage/mirrorselect in the chroot (which has to be done after syncing, when already selected mirrors would be preferred (i guess)). Also the green tip is obsolete. I'd suggest moving it before the chroot while preserving the tip. Maybe an edit to the installtion alternatives page? --Schnecki (talk) 16:16, 20 January 2024 (UTC)
This has been solved. Glibg10b (talk) 11:48, 1 April 2024 (UTC)

The "locale.gen" file doesn't have template like in the handbook base steps

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This discussion is done.

Hi there. During installation of the fresh gentoo, I found that "locale.gen" file from the stage3-amd64-20200607T214504Z doesn't have template like in the handbook steps.

I think that it was good idea, if user can uncomment a language that he needs in the locale.gen file instead of to looking for this language param in the man page of locale!

What do you think about it?

Thanks in advance!

--t0ha (talk) 21:15, 12 June 2020 (UTC)

Stage tarball issues should be reported at bugs.gentoo.org. This talk page is for issues with the wiki page itself.
This issue seems to have been resolved, so I'm closing it. Glibg10b (talk) 11:57, 1 April 2024 (UTC)

Gnome no longer requires systemd

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This discussion is done.

There are gnome profiles without systemd that use elogind instead. Should the sentence about using >= gnome 3.8 be removed?

Trainz-are-kul (talk) 20:17, 21 November 2020 (UTC)

Done --Grknight (talk) 13:15, 22 November 2020 (UTC)

Mounting of btrfs

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This discussion is done as of 2024-01-03.

I often failed with the handbook when it later comes to 

grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
/usr/sbin/grub-probe: error: cannot find a device for / (is /dev mounted?).

...because there is no / in the 'mount' list. I usually do a mount -a inside the chroot in order to mount all the btrfs subvolumes configured in the fstab there. But / wasn't mounted like that. The simple workaround is and please mention that in the handbook: mount / After that / is mounted again from the internal fstab and grub-mkconfig works.

--Massimo B. (talk) 11:55, 15 December 2021 (UTC)

Hello, Massimo B. , did you put your btrfs rootfs in a separate, non-default btrfs subvolume? Either that, or I'm wondering if you just didn't --rbind /dev into the chroot... what are the steps for someone to reproduce? If the Handbook is missing a step we'll try to change it, but creating subvolumes is outside Handbook scope... and recursively mounting /dev is already in the Handbook. Thank you, --Maffblaster (talk) 23:13, 20 December 2021 (UTC)
Hi, I have the rootfs on a non-default btrfs subvolume, yes. You mean setting it as default would solve the issue? However grub-mkconfig just parses 'mount' for / and doesn't find it. This is my fstab which I just apply by mount -a && mount / after entering the chroot, mount -a alone does not seem to (re)mount /:
 grep btrfs /etc/fstab
LABEL=gentoo	/				btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes/root			0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/mnt/btrfs-top-lvl		btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=/					0 1
#LABEL=gentoo	/mnt/snapshots			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=snapshots				0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/home				btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes/home			0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/mnt/data			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes/data			0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/tmp				btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/tmp		0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/usr/portage			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/usr.portage	0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/usr/src			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/usr.src	0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/var/cache			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/var.cache	0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/var/db/repos			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/var.db.repos	0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/var/lib/layman			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/var.lib.layman	0 1
LABEL=gentoo	/var/tmp			btrfs	defaults,compress-force=zstd:3,space_cache=v2,subvol=volumes.root.nosnap/var.tmp	0 1

--Massimo B. (talk) 10:52, 22 December 2021 (UTC)

Unfortunately I am uncertain what is causing the issue. The handbook doesn't go into detail about btrfs sub-volumes and I don't plan on adding that level of detail in the future. If you figure out the cause of the issue please return here, re-open the discussion so that we notice it, and share the solution. Perhaps a small note could be added specific to btrfs installs which put rootfs on a non-default sub-volume... You could try asking on the mailing list or #gentoo (webchat)? Thanks! --Maffblaster (talk) 07:01, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Link to recovery section of tips and tricks

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This discussion is still ongoing.

There is a section on recovering from a malfunctioning installation on the tips and tricks article. Would it not be a good idea to link to that section from the tip that mentions the possibility of recovering an installation? -- Ris (talk) 10:25, 13 March 2023 (UTC)

I want to be able to link out, but it generates a lot of maintenance when anchors within the main change...and they can change unexpectedly. I'd rather write up a new Handbook section that covers how to resume a partially complete installation instead which is inspired by the section you linked... — The preceding unsigned comment was added by Maffblaster (talk • contribs) 06:39, 4 January 2024‎
Is this planned? Or should I close this discussion? Glibg10b (talk) 12:15, 1 April 2024 (UTC)

Minor spellchecking

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This discussion is done as of 2024-01-03.
  • In Configuring USE Variables: With Gentoo users can... --> With Gentoo, users can...
  • In Ready, set go!: "Then continue withInstalling [sic] the Gentoo base system." This link is unnecessarily redirecting to the next section of the same page.
  • design principal --> design principle
  • uncertainty whether --> uncertainty about whether
  • Microsoft Windows based verification --> Microsoft-Windows-based verification

Avidseeker (talk) 23:52, 28 May 2023 (UTC)

In Preparing for a bootloader: it is necessary prepare the... --> it is necessary to prepare the...--Lknows (talk) 04:36, 26 December 2023 (UTC)
Good hunting! There are probably more. At least these have been fixed now. Thank you! --Maffblaster (talk) 06:55, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Add info about the new binhost

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This discussion is done as of 2024-01-03.

Recently it was announced that Gentoo now has an official binary package host, perhaps there should be info added to selecting mirrors telling users how to add this if they wish?

A POC can be (formatting intentionally removed):

==== {{Anchor|Binary package host}} Binary package host ====

Adding a binary package mirror could greatly decrease the install time needed and could be useful for older hardware. The repository configuration for the "binhost" is found in the directory {{Path|/etc/portage/binhost.conf}}, much like how {{Path|{{Link|/etc/portage/repos.conf|repos.conf}}}} functions.

{{FileBox|filename=/mnt/gentoo/etc/portage/binhosts.conf/gentoobinhost.conf|title=UK mirror example|1=

[binhost]

priority = 9999

sync-uri = https://mirror.bytemark.co.uk/gentoo/releases/amd64/binpackages/17.1/x86-64/

}}

Xarvatium (talk) 21:26, 3 January 2024 (UTC)\

Good idea. I used your POC as inspiration and this request has been implemented. See Special:Diff/1272283/1272285. This section may need some tuning in the near future. Curious to know what happens with the system profile number (17.1) and binhost number in the sync-uri value do not line up... I hope there is a mechanism to notify the sysadmin in such a condition. Thanks! --Maffblaster (talk) 06:36, 4 January 2024 (UTC)

Make it clearer that the base 'desktop' profile does not install a default DE

In the "Choosing the right profile" section, there's currently a "Tip" box saying:

> Desktop profiles are not exclusively for desktop environments. They are also suitable for minimal window managers like i3 or sway.

However, this doesn't make it clear that using a desktop profile doesn't inherently set up a default DE, and that the base 'desktop' profile in particular certainly doesn't do so. i've seen a couple of posts on the forums recently where people had assumed that they would get a DE installed, rather than the profile merely setting appropriate USE flags.

-- Flexibeast (talk) 06:45, 11 January 2024 (UTC)


How is that not clear? Otherwise, what would the default DE be? and login manager? etc.

Engrenage (talk) 11:50, 4 February 2024 (UTC)


Agree that this is slightly misleading to newcomers--it's presented like you're choosing from a set of desktop or headless options. New users would probably assume if you chose Gnome or Plasma that the session manager would probably also be handled by the profile. A tip like the following might be more clear, assuming my noob-grade understanding is right:

> Profiles do not install desktop environments, nor do they lock you into a particular environment. For example, selecting a `gnome` profile sets the gnome USE flag for other packages, but does not install Gnome. The steps for installing your preferred desktop environment, which may not be the one named in the profile, can be followed after you've finalized your install.

I also suggest moving the banner _after_ the existing "A profile is a building block for any Gentoo system ..." block, and add a hyperlink to the Profiles page.

First contribution here--thanks for your time.

--Emptonaut (talk) 18:00, 19 Feb 2024 (EST)

resolv-march-native

should IMHO be added along where mention is made of cpuid2cpuflag ; somewhere in the line of "add output of `resolve-march-native` to COMMON_FLAGS"

also, I am of the opinion these 2 tools should be on the install support : they are only used at setup, it feels weird to emerge them for a single use and them unmerge them right away (that last step is not mentioned in the manual)

Engrenage (talk) 08:49, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

Isn't march=native effectively the same while beeing shorter, needing no tools and surviving a cpu change?

Schnecki (talk) 09:22, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

Definitely not equivalent when using distcc. Also, when going through a CPU change one may run into serious problems unless a generic architecture is set there (ie. making sure any potentially unsupported flags are set) Engrenage (talk) 10:43, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

Fair, but distcc is a rather advanced use case that is only mentioned once in the standard handbook and not further explained (in the stage file section under MAKEOPTS there is a brief notice). Someone who wants to setup distcc should follow the appropriate wiki page where the "march" question is already explained. Schnecki (talk) 12:28, 15 February 2024 (UTC)

USE deprecation in make.conf

following a discussion with Michał Górny ( https://github.com/projg2/cpuid2cpuflags/issues/17#issuecomment-1907869996 ) USE should not be set in make.conf, but package.use

Should mention getuto call

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This discussion is done.

Installing binary packages works only after obtaining Gentoo GPG keys by calling the getuto command from the app-portage/getuto package.

It's an RDPEND of the sys-apps/portage but AFAIK the Handbook:AMD64/Installation/Base#Optional: Adding a binary package host section should explicit mention it.

Thanks. Kuraga (talk) 22:02, 2 March 2024 (UTC)

Thanks! Fixed by Sam James (Sam) (Special:Diff/1287348). Closing. Glibg10b (talk) 12:24, 1 April 2024 (UTC)

emerge cpuid2cpuflags with --oneshot

Talk status
This discussion is done as of 2024-03-16.

this tool likely won't be of any use to the user ever again, so why keep it? mirrorselect is installed as --oneshot and that seems like something that might be useful in a very rare case (not saying that should be changed, just that it seems inconsistent). MihailMihov (talk) 21:31, 7 March 2024 (UTC)

Good idea, could also double up as a small intro to world hygine so we should have this change.
Immolo (talk) 11:50, 8 March 2024 (UTC)
Added in Special:Diff/1288665/1288877, thanks!
--Xarvatium (talk) 18:32, 16 March 2024 (UTC)

provide info or different protocols for mirrors and how many to add

Talk status
This discussion is still ongoing.

It isn't made clear what the pros and cons of the different protocols are, so I was left wondering which one is fastest/most secure. Also maybe there should be a recommendation of how many mirrors to add. MihailMihov (talk) 21:35, 7 March 2024 (UTC)

Not sure there is a need for this on, can you please show an example of this would look in Template:Proposal to help explain the benefits?
Immolo (talk) 11:50, 8 March 2024 (UTC)

command to list timezones references parent directory

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This discussion is done as of 2024-03-16.

the command ln -sf ../usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/Brussels /etc/localtime seems to assume that the user is not in / (why would it?) or is this just a typo? MihailMihov (talk) 21:39, 7 March 2024 (UTC)

The Handbook is designed to always teach users the correct way so while you are techicnally correct, we shouldn't make this change and cause an unforseen issue.
Immolo (talk) 11:50, 8 March 2024 (UTC)
I don't think that I explaind myself correctly. I'm not saying to use relative paths, in fact I don't see why the locale is referenced as such. Why ../usr instead of /usr? MihailMihov (talk) 13:03, 8 March 2024 (UTC)
I see what you mean now and fully agree.
Proposed changes - Please make edits here until a final revision is agreed upon.

root #ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/Brussels /etc/localtime
Immolo (talk) 18:38, 16 March 2024 (UTC)
After speaking to User:floppym it's clear this change isn't required for soft linking so am returning this closed based on that discussion.
Immolo (talk) 19:10, 16 March 2024 (UTC)
Symlink targets are always evaluated relative to their position in the filesystem, so the working directory isn't relevent when calling "ln -s" with an absolute path as the last argument.
We generally try to avoid using absolute paths in symlink targets since that can cause problems when working with alternate ROOT directories. In this particular case it probably wouldn't matter.
--Floppym (talk) 19:17, 16 March 2024 (UTC)

example shows selecting the POSIX locale, but that causes issues in desktop environments

Talk status
This discussion is done as of 2024-03-16.

there is a warning that atleast one utf 8 locale must be built, but no warning that following the example and selecting POSIX will cause issues with graphical applications. MihailMihov (talk) 21:44, 7 March 2024 (UTC)

Fixed in Special:Diff/1288877/1288884, thanks!
--Xarvatium (talk) 19:23, 16 March 2024 (UTC)

Example for binary package host example has inconsistent naming

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This discussion is done as of 2024-03-15.

The example for the binary package host is in the location /etc/portage/binrepos.conf/gentoo.conf while the location in the Binary Host Quickstart points to /etc/portage/binrepos.conf/gentoobinhost.conf, and some users might find this confusing.

WavyEbuilder (talk) 21:22, 15 March 2024 (UTC)

To add this issue was found by a new user that got confused, so this is a needed changed.
Proposed changes - Please make edits here until a final revision is agreed upon.

A second important step in selecting mirrors is to configure the Gentoo ebuild repository via the /etc/portage/repos.conf/gentoobinhost.conf file. This file contains the sync information needed to update the package repository (the collection of ebuilds and related files containing all the information Portage needs to download and install software packages).
Immolo (talk) 21:29, 15 March 2024 (UTC)
Fixed in Special:Diff/1287348/1288665, thanks!
--Xarvatium (talk) 21:34, 15 March 2024 (UTC)

Mentions of 17.1 profiles should be changed to 23.0

Talk status
This discussion is done.

Now that the stage 3 files have been updated to use 23.0 profiles, I think it should be time to update any mentions of 17.1 profiles to 23.0, as I believe it could in some cases clear up confusion for some users who are installing Gentoo for the first time.

--MymeType (talk) 23:41, 27 March 2024 (UTC)

AMD64 bumped in Special:Diff/1282566/1289968
--Xarvatium (talk) 23:56, 27 March 2024 (UTC)
I see no more occurrences of 17.1. Closing. Glibg10b (talk) 12:30, 1 April 2024 (UTC)

Please delete this: "# May have been created in a previous step"

Change 2 of 2: (the 1st change was in "Preparing the disks"). Please delete this: "# May have been created in a previous step" from this line (ONLY the text; NOT the command): 

root # mkdir /efi # May have been created in a previous step

-- Pietinger 14:58, 17 April 2024 (UTC) with help from @negril in IRC TODAY

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